Hoarder tenants - what to do

[Chris B.]

The current tenants in one of my SFHs are hoarders.  Boxes still remain along with piles of clothes and everything else throughout the house in every room and hallway since move-in.  This is a safety and health hazard.  Its difficult to traverse the house.  Long term this will lead to maintenance and infestation issues.  The home hasn't been cleaned since I cleaned it before their move-in.  Dog hair is piling up along with trash.  They have been warned several times.  You get the picture. 

I'd like to just not renew the lease and kick them out when it expires in June 2023.  My soft side wants to tell them that I'll renew the contract only (month to month, not year) if they remove the junk and properly clean the place.  As-is, if they move out, the deposit won't come near covering the repairs at all (cost of doing business and making the poor decision to let them move in on my part) and I think there will be a good chance they will skip out on last month's rent also.  Apparently they did this at the last place too.  I had called the previous owner and he lied to me at screening time telling me they were great.  If I could get them to clean the place to my standard instead of kicking them out, it sure would cost me a lot less cleaning up after them.  This is likely kicking the bad apple can down the road.  What are your thoughts?  If they move out now, it could easily cost me 2k - 4k or more to recover the place including repainting the walls where they stuck stuff like light strips up.  Keeping them around may just lead to more issues.  But if a miracle happens, and they clean the mess to my standard, I'd be mostly happy.  Any monetary recovery is unlikely as most of their income is from disability.  The father does have a decent paid job though.

If I decide to terminate the lease and they don't pay last month's rent, I intend to immediately file for eviction also.

The place had brand new tile and interior paint right before they moved in.

Thanks for your thoughts!

[Richard F.]

Aloha,

Safety and Health hazard, non renew. Yes, inflation affects the cost of the School of Hard Knocks as well. Tighten up your screening process for next rodeo tenant.

[Nathan Gesner]

Quote from @Chris B.:

Tell them right now that you will not renew their lease and they need to start looking for a new home. Give them the opportunity to leave early with two weeks notice and let them go. Expect to lose money. Stretch the deposit as much as you can and then move on.

In the future, uphold your standards. If you inspect and notice a problem, give the tenant a written violation notice, a deadline of 15 days to fix the issue, and then inspect for compliance. If they fail, issue them a 30-day notice of termination and stick to it. Don't let problems pile up. 

My tenants get three warnings. The first one is when they review the lease and sign. The second and third are in writing, and they come with deadlines and consequences. Learn how to nip problems in the bud and you won't have as many problems.

[Chris B.]

I appreciate the feedback.  I have no problem if they move out early so the comment on allowing them to look for a place and move out before the end of the lease provides an opportunity I think both sides can appreciate.  Thanks!

[Tommy Parker]

No way that's a hazard. Like Nathan has said tell them you won't renew their lease and they need to be out. 

[Henry T.]

I dont know AZ law, but what if they get evicted and insist you store their belongings? It would be required at your expense in the west coast states. Also, don't mention the word hoarder in your notices, it's a disability. Stick to your lease requiring no personal items in yard, well kept grass, no dead vehicles, etc. Or maybe in AZ, a landlord can simply terminate for no reason after lease end, or month to month 30 day notice? That would be nice, then you could proceed with holdover eviction.

[Chris B.]

Thank you for the additional tips!  

I looked up the law in AZ...

https://www.azleg.gov/ars/33/0...

It appears that per section D.2, the landlord needs to provide the tenant with a notice requiring the problem be resolved (health and safety related) or the contract will be terminated on the date included (at least 20 days notice).  I have provided 2 prior notices in writing, but didn't state that I would terminate the lease if not resolved within those notices so it appears that those letters may not count in the same way this notice does count.  So at this point, I'll provide the proper notice and if the issue isn't resolved, then terminate the lease.  Termination date may align with end of year contract for convenience reasons and thus a notice of non-renewal.

[Todd Jones]

Quote from @Chris B.:

Thank you for the additional tips!  

I looked up the law in AZ...

https://www.azleg.gov/ars/33/0...

It appears that per section D.2, the landlord needs to provide the tenant with a notice requiring the problem be resolved (health and safety related) or the contract will be terminated on the date included (at least 20 days notice).  I have provided 2 prior notices in writing, but didn't state that I would terminate the lease if not resolved within those notices so it appears that those letters may not count in the same way this notice does count.  So at this point, I'll provide the proper notice and if the issue isn't resolved, then terminate the lease.  Termination date may align with end of year contract for convenience reasons and thus a notice of non-renewal.

I’m curious on an update. This is a fear I have based on visiting several hoarder homes. Regarding your “soft side”, I get it. They maybe nice folks and don’t want to see folks suffer having to find another place to live. 
I look at this perspective: they will find another place and they may do the exact same thing. If they ask you for a referral, they really will have a hard time finding a place but you have to be honest. 
Just start preparing savings-wise f when they leave. You may have to do more expensive repairs besides picking up debris: i.e., carpet replacement, possible wall damage you couldn’t see, repainting the walls with killz primer to cover the smell, repair portions of subfloor because of the dog urine smell. 
The good news is, once the repairs are done…they’re done. Both parties will then move on.

[Chris B.]

I did provide the notice of the violation via certified mail and provided a second copy delivered by hand of the need to clean up.  I also provided notification of intent to not renew the lease but stated verbally that if things improved to the degree required, I'd reconsider.  The notice to clean was a 10 day notice but I told them I'd be back in about a month to inspect and I gave them a little over a month actually and when I re-inspected, it was still a problem.  The notice to not renew was about 90 days before the end of the lease.  With that, and the pictures I had, I could have tried to evict them right then.  With the lease coming to an end soon, I told them I'd simply not be renewing it and provided them the option to move out early if they find a place and with only a 15 day notice instead of the 30 generally required per the lease.  Its really a sad situation.  A family with kids and grandma.  Grandma is the one I interact with.  The others completely ignore me and actually left the home when I last inspected leaving grandma to fend for herself.  She was the only one that cleaned up her area and is a sweet lady and explained to me she had to live with them for financial reasons but couldn't seem to make them clean up.  She even stated that she knew this would eventually come with all of the requests and later warnings over the months I provided.  I asked her if I should even look in the garage and the other rooms to see the improvement and she said no.  From the general areas of the home I could clearly see the rest of the family had put in zero effort.  Grandma told me about some issues with the home and I performed the repairs.  When I was adjusting the wheels on a closet door, I open it and see food and French fry bags on the carpet.  The door its self had juice splattered all over it.  This is generally how the house as a whole is at this point so yes, I'll be putting in an effort at a significant expense to bring it up to my standards for re-rental.  I may have to evict them for an overstay also as they likely aren't putting in much of an effort to find a new place.  I heard (after they moved in to my place) from the last landlord that he was trying to get them to move out for 6+ months.  I'll be visiting them for another maintenance visit and make it crystal clear that I have no leniency for this.  If a new landlord calls me for a reference.  I won't lie, but I'll tell them I'm not comfortable stating anything except about their timely rent payment history.

Thanks to the community here for the support!

[Richard F.]

Quote from @Chris B.:

  If a new landlord calls me for a reference.  I won't lie, but I'll tell them I'm not comfortable stating anything except about their timely rent payment history.

I usually just advise there were "housekeeping" issues that they did not address. As long as you have pics for evidence if it comes to that...   You might also consider providing contact info to Grandma for Adult Protective Services.

[Henry T.]

People like this never move. Have you ever noticed a neighborhood hoarder house? It's usually that way for 30 years. They don't leave unless forced.